Growth and Infrastructure Bill

Mary Glindon Excerpts

Monday 17th December 2012 Commons Chamber

[Gordon Birtwistle]

I accept that in my case it was voluntary. I could have taken holiday pay, but I would rather have had the four shillings an hour more, which is very little today but was a lot of money in those days, to save up. I am reasonably confident that what I will hear from the Minister will lead me to believe that the proposal is voluntary enough. I am sure that it is voluntary and what I have read in the Bill does not suggest that people will be forced. I think the proposal is okay, but it is a small idea for niche businesses. Major companies will not be offering the option, only small companies, and we do not have the right to stand in the way of people’s freedom to take it up if they wish.

[Mrs Mary Glindon (North Tyneside) (Lab)]

I want to speak about this group of amendments because in recent weeks, like many other hon. Members in the Chamber, I have been contacted by a number of my constituents who are concerned about the Bill and would rather see it rejected. In the past week, I received a constant flow of correspondence specifically on clause 25 and not one of those people had anything good to say about it.

My hon. Friend the Member for Hayes and Harlington (John McDonnell) made a good case for his amendments and the coalition partners, the right hon. Member for Hazel Grove (Andrew Stunell) and the hon. Member for Burnley (Gordon Birtwistle), have tried to ease the severity of the clause with their amendments. As my constituents have identified, however, the clause has no saving graces. The recent consultation showed that as few as five out of 200 businesses say that they would want to use such a scheme, but the Government want to see it rolled out. They want employers to take it up, as they would get a far greater pool of employees to choose from, and it is hoped that potential employees would have a better opportunity of finding employment—but at what cost? If someone has to forfeit their rights on unfair dismissal and to redundancy pay, that cannot be a price worth paying.

My constituents have asked time and again what the real value of shares could be. Once the shares are paid for, national insurance and pay-as-you-earn taxation will come into play. Forfeiting all those rights for a hefty tax bill does not make sense. One of the strongest arguments for me is that the clause is bad for women, as parents, and carers, who need flexible employment to have the dignity of working while they carry out their valuable roles. Such employment gives them the opportunity to be outside the home and to feel not only that they contribute by looking after their loved ones but that they play a valuable role in society, as well as providing them with a social link with the wider world.

By not having flexible working, people also forfeit the right to training. How does that fit into a Bill about growing the economy? Training for personal and professional development is crucial for firms to grow and expand. We cannot have a standstill work force who do not keep up with all forms of training. People do not feel valued if they do not have that development. We have seen what a difference investing in people makes to firms.

The whole scheme smacks of inequality and goes completely against the equal opportunities that have been so hard-fought for. We could go on: the loss of maternity rights would be something else that disadvantages women.

The clause should be deleted. It is completely against the rights of workers and it will do nothing to grow businesses.

--- Later in debate ---

[Mrs Glindon]

Serving on the Bill Committee confirmed to me that all of us in the House are human, to a greater or lesser extent. I genuinely believe that the coalition Government want to see growth, but their approach is wrong.

It has already been said that this is not a Bill for growth. I am sad to hear Members on the Government Benches decry what has been said by the Local Government Association, an association that is trusted by all the councils throughout the land and their representative body. What could be more representative of our local communities and the elected bodies that represent them than that body? The Government would really have shown a commitment to growth if they had listened to the LGA’s suggestions on the Bill. It said that planning is not why no construction work is going on; the reason is that banks are not lending and people are not buying. That is what is stalling and stopping development. Until the Government listen, no progress can be made.

Drawing on my past as a member of a local authority planning committee—having been a councillor for 15 years, I sometimes find it hard to leave things behind—I know how committed councillors are when making planning decisions, how they can listen directly to local people and how local community groups or individuals often make representations about their planning concerns. What could be worse than, as might happen because of clause 1, a council that is deemed to be a failed council, whatever that might mean—we are still unsure about the definition—finding that its planning decisions are being taken away and swept off to either the Secretary of State or the Planning Inspectorate? How will the people who have been voted in to represent local people feel? How will local people feel when they have no right of appeal? It is that stark.

I have a further concern. The Planning Inspectorate makes household decisions within seven weeks and non- household decisions within 17 weeks, but local authorities make household decisions within eight weeks and non-household decisions within 13 weeks, and that is the case for more than 89% of councils. It seems that the majority are being punished for the failings of the few.

In relation to section 106 agreements and affordable housing, I have referred to the fact that in North Tyneside alone around 4,000 people are currently waiting for council housing. That does not include those who are hoping to buy and struggling to raise money to put down a deposit for a mortgage. I have constituents coming to me who simply cannot buy a house and cannot get affordable housing and so are looking to the council. However we define affordable housing, the need is as great, whether it is for someone looking for a house they can afford to buy or to rent. Taking away the housing element and the 106 agreements will leave those people even more desperate.

I spoke before about employee ownership, or share ownership as it is currently called. Many constituents have contacted me about that over the past week because they are so concerned about it, as well as about the rest of the Bill. They see what is wrong with it. They see how it undermines workers’ right and takes away women’s rights and carers’ rights to flexible working. I have stressed the need for training and the fact that it is not right that people will lose their right to training. Training enhances and helps companies grow in professionalism through personal development, and that can really make employers proud of their employees.

I have mentioned those three points. It is rather like someone going to confession to recite their sins for a period of time and saying, “That’s all I can remember, Father.” I am looking back at my time on the Bill Committee and in the House today, but it is not my sins that I am concerned about; it is the Government’s transgressions and what they are doing with the Bill. I hope that we reject it.